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Matthew Scudder #15
Hope to Die
The city caught its collective breath when upscale couple Byrne and Susan Hollander were slaughtered in a brutal home invasion. Now, a few days later, the killers themselves have turned up dead behind the locked door of a Brooklyn hellhole -- one apparently slain by his partner in crime who then took his own life.
There's something drawing Matthew Scudder to this case that the cops have quickly and eagerly closed: a nagging suspicion that a third man is involved, a cold, diabolical puppet master who manipulates his two accomplices, then cuts their strings when he's done with them. No one but Scudder even suspects he exists. And his worst fear is that the guy is just getting started ...
There's something drawing Matthew Scudder to this case that the cops have quickly and eagerly closed: a nagging suspicion that a third man is involved, a cold, diabolical puppet master who manipulates his two accomplices, then cuts their strings when he's done with them. No one but Scudder even suspects he exists. And his worst fear is that the guy is just getting started ...
364 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published October 16, 2001
About the author
Lawrence Block
750 books2,851 followersLawrence Block has been writing crime, mystery, and suspense fiction for more than half a century. He has published in excess (oh, wretched excess!) of 100 books, and no end of short stories.
Born in Buffalo, N.Y., LB attended Antioch College, but left before completing his studies; school authorities advised him that they felt he’d be happier elsewhere, and he thought this was remarkably perceptive of them.
His earliest work, published pseudonymously in the late 1950s, was mostly in the field of midcentury erotica, an apprenticeship he shared with Donald E. Westlake and Robert Silverberg. The first time Lawrence Block’s name appeared in print was when his short story “You Can’t Lose” was published in the February 1958 issue of Manhunt. The first book published under his own name was Mona (1961); it was reissued several times over the years, once as Sweet Slow Death. In 2005 it became the first offering from Hard Case Crime, and bore for the first time LB’s original title, Grifter’s Game.
LB is best known for his series characters, including cop-turned-private investigator Matthew Scudder, gentleman burglar Bernie Rhodenbarr, globe-trotting insomniac Evan Tanner, and introspective assassin Keller.
Because one name is never enough, LB has also published under pseudonyms including Jill Emerson, John Warren Wells, Lesley Evans, and Anne Campbell Clarke.
LB’s magazine appearances include American Heritage, Redbook, Playboy, Linn’s Stamp News, Cosmopolitan, GQ, and The New York Times. His monthly instructional column ran in Writer’s Digest for 14 years, and led to a string of books for writers, including the classics Telling Lies for Fun & Profit and The Liar’s Bible. He has also written episodic television (Tilt!) and the Wong Kar-wai film, My Blueberry Nights.
Several of LB’s books have been filmed. The latest, A Walk Among the Tombstones, stars Liam Neeson as Matthew Scudder and is scheduled for release in September, 2014.
LB is a Grand Master of Mystery Writers of America, and a past president of MWA and the Private Eye Writers of America. He has won the Edgar and Shamus awards four times each, and the Japanese Maltese Falcon award twice, as well as the Nero Wolfe and Philip Marlowe awards, a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Private Eye Writers of America, and the Diamond Dagger for Life Achievement from the Crime Writers Association (UK). He’s also been honored with the Gumshoe Lifetime Achievement Award from Mystery Ink magazine and the Edward D. Hoch Memorial Golden Derringer for Lifetime Achievement in the short story. In France, he has been proclaimed a Grand Maitre du Roman Noir and has twice been awarded the Societe 813 trophy. He has been a guest of honor at Bouchercon and at book fairs and mystery festivals in France, Germany, Australia, Italy, New Zealand, Spain and Taiwan. As if that were not enough, he was also presented with the key to the city of Muncie, Indiana. (But as soon as he left, they changed the locks.)
LB and his wife Lynne are enthusiastic New Yorkers and relentless world travelers; the two are members of the Travelers Century Club, and have visited around 160 countries.
He is a modest and humble fellow, although you would never guess as much from this biographical note.
Born in Buffalo, N.Y., LB attended Antioch College, but left before completing his studies; school authorities advised him that they felt he’d be happier elsewhere, and he thought this was remarkably perceptive of them.
His earliest work, published pseudonymously in the late 1950s, was mostly in the field of midcentury erotica, an apprenticeship he shared with Donald E. Westlake and Robert Silverberg. The first time Lawrence Block’s name appeared in print was when his short story “You Can’t Lose” was published in the February 1958 issue of Manhunt. The first book published under his own name was Mona (1961); it was reissued several times over the years, once as Sweet Slow Death. In 2005 it became the first offering from Hard Case Crime, and bore for the first time LB’s original title, Grifter’s Game.
LB is best known for his series characters, including cop-turned-private investigator Matthew Scudder, gentleman burglar Bernie Rhodenbarr, globe-trotting insomniac Evan Tanner, and introspective assassin Keller.
Because one name is never enough, LB has also published under pseudonyms including Jill Emerson, John Warren Wells, Lesley Evans, and Anne Campbell Clarke.
LB’s magazine appearances include American Heritage, Redbook, Playboy, Linn’s Stamp News, Cosmopolitan, GQ, and The New York Times. His monthly instructional column ran in Writer’s Digest for 14 years, and led to a string of books for writers, including the classics Telling Lies for Fun & Profit and The Liar’s Bible. He has also written episodic television (Tilt!) and the Wong Kar-wai film, My Blueberry Nights.
Several of LB’s books have been filmed. The latest, A Walk Among the Tombstones, stars Liam Neeson as Matthew Scudder and is scheduled for release in September, 2014.
LB is a Grand Master of Mystery Writers of America, and a past president of MWA and the Private Eye Writers of America. He has won the Edgar and Shamus awards four times each, and the Japanese Maltese Falcon award twice, as well as the Nero Wolfe and Philip Marlowe awards, a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Private Eye Writers of America, and the Diamond Dagger for Life Achievement from the Crime Writers Association (UK). He’s also been honored with the Gumshoe Lifetime Achievement Award from Mystery Ink magazine and the Edward D. Hoch Memorial Golden Derringer for Lifetime Achievement in the short story. In France, he has been proclaimed a Grand Maitre du Roman Noir and has twice been awarded the Societe 813 trophy. He has been a guest of honor at Bouchercon and at book fairs and mystery festivals in France, Germany, Australia, Italy, New Zealand, Spain and Taiwan. As if that were not enough, he was also presented with the key to the city of Muncie, Indiana. (But as soon as he left, they changed the locks.)
LB and his wife Lynne are enthusiastic New Yorkers and relentless world travelers; the two are members of the Travelers Century Club, and have visited around 160 countries.
He is a modest and humble fellow, although you would never guess as much from this biographical note.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 197 reviews
March 7, 2017
I've noted several times on this site that Lawrence Block's Matthew Scudder series is my favorite of all crime fiction series. If I were cast away on the proverbial desert island and could take only one series with me, I wouldn't hesitate a second before grabbing these books off the shelf.
That said, even in your favorite series, there must of necessity be one book that you like above all the others and another that is your least favorite. And for me, Hope To Die is my least favorite of the Scudder novels, even though it's still a very good read.
The book opens with the brutal murder of a Manhattan couple who return home from a concert and find burglars waiting for them. Coincidentally, Matthew Scudder and his wife, Elaine, had attended the same concert. Only a few days later, the killers also turn up dead, still in possession of virtually all of the loot from the burglary. It appears that one of the burglars killed the other and then shot himself.
For the cops, it's a neat, tidy package and they're happy to wrap it up and move on. But the victims' niece is troubled and asks Scudder to look into the case. Matt agrees and quickly comes to the conclusion that all is not as it appears and that there's another person involved who was the mastermind behind the crime and who then killed his two associates. Proving it, though, and getting the cops to reopen a closed case will be another matter all together. And in the meantime, the killer that Matt has deduced out of the evidence may have other victims already in his sights...
This is a perfectly serviceable story, and it's an entertaining read that keeps you turning the pages. The problem, at least for me, is that it just doesn't feel like a Matthew Scudder novel. Matt's wife, Elaine, and his sidekick, T.J., are present throughout, and his gangster friend, Mick Ballou, makes a cameo appearance. There are references to Matt's days as an alcoholic, but somehow a lot of it seems pro forma in this case.
The real problem that I had with the book is a major disruption that first occurs about 90 pages into the book. The fourteen previous Scudder novels were all narrated in Matt's first-person voice. The reader knew nothing that Matt didn't know. Then, all of a sudden, 90 pages into the fifteenth book, the POV switches to a third-person view of a serial killer plotting his moves.
The first time I read this book, I stared at it in disbelief when this shift occurred. It totally threw me and kept me pretty much off-balance as the POV then continued to shift back and forth throughout the book. Beyond that, Matt seems less introspective in this book, even though he spends some time ruminating on the fact that he is getting older (62 at this point). Clearly the world is changing, as one would inevitably expect. But this doesn't feel like Scudder's world nearly to the extent that it does in the other books in the series.
As I suggested above, from any other author and in any other series, this would be a pretty good book. But from this author and in this series, it's a bit of a disappointment, at least by comparison to the other entries.
That said, even in your favorite series, there must of necessity be one book that you like above all the others and another that is your least favorite. And for me, Hope To Die is my least favorite of the Scudder novels, even though it's still a very good read.
The book opens with the brutal murder of a Manhattan couple who return home from a concert and find burglars waiting for them. Coincidentally, Matthew Scudder and his wife, Elaine, had attended the same concert. Only a few days later, the killers also turn up dead, still in possession of virtually all of the loot from the burglary. It appears that one of the burglars killed the other and then shot himself.
For the cops, it's a neat, tidy package and they're happy to wrap it up and move on. But the victims' niece is troubled and asks Scudder to look into the case. Matt agrees and quickly comes to the conclusion that all is not as it appears and that there's another person involved who was the mastermind behind the crime and who then killed his two associates. Proving it, though, and getting the cops to reopen a closed case will be another matter all together. And in the meantime, the killer that Matt has deduced out of the evidence may have other victims already in his sights...
This is a perfectly serviceable story, and it's an entertaining read that keeps you turning the pages. The problem, at least for me, is that it just doesn't feel like a Matthew Scudder novel. Matt's wife, Elaine, and his sidekick, T.J., are present throughout, and his gangster friend, Mick Ballou, makes a cameo appearance. There are references to Matt's days as an alcoholic, but somehow a lot of it seems pro forma in this case.
The real problem that I had with the book is a major disruption that first occurs about 90 pages into the book. The fourteen previous Scudder novels were all narrated in Matt's first-person voice. The reader knew nothing that Matt didn't know. Then, all of a sudden, 90 pages into the fifteenth book, the POV switches to a third-person view of a serial killer plotting his moves.
The first time I read this book, I stared at it in disbelief when this shift occurred. It totally threw me and kept me pretty much off-balance as the POV then continued to shift back and forth throughout the book. Beyond that, Matt seems less introspective in this book, even though he spends some time ruminating on the fact that he is getting older (62 at this point). Clearly the world is changing, as one would inevitably expect. But this doesn't feel like Scudder's world nearly to the extent that it does in the other books in the series.
As I suggested above, from any other author and in any other series, this would be a pretty good book. But from this author and in this series, it's a bit of a disappointment, at least by comparison to the other entries.
June 6, 2019
This is a professional and enjoyable entry in a superb series. Detective Scudder may be getting old (sixty-two years old in this adventure), but the series hardly show its age. And yet...there's a new darkness here--a forced, sensationalist darkness. And I doubt it bodes well for the future.
The plot is interesting. There has been a bloody invasion of an upscale brownstone, and the couple who owned it have been murdered. The crime apparently has solved itself, for the two burglars have been discovered with their bags of loot, dead in a murder/suicide. But Matt soon begins to suspect that a third man may have been involved, a third man who may a dangerous, very clever criminal.
I liked this book for the rare glimpse it gives us into Matt’s life and its present consequences; we get to observe him with his two sons from a previous marriage, and their meeting leads to a moral problem that his present wife Elaine helps him solve.
I also was intrigued by the personality of the murderer. Block allows us to get a rare glimpse of his killer from the inside, and we see the workings of the mind that produces characteristic crimes: it is a very clever mind, addicted to creating situations that are “too cute,” filled with ironies, hidden clues and suggestive aliases. It is this “too cute” behavior that puts Matt Scudder on his trail.
Perhaps most memorably, we are allowed to watch someone commit murder once for profit only to find he wishes to commit more for pleasure. He finds that he enjoys it, and his transformation into a serial killer makes this novel particularly terrifying.
Still...it seemed to me that Block relishes the mind of the killer a little too much, that he becomes a voyeur intruding on his own vision. Many of the explicit details he relates to us are shocking--and titillating--but finally these narrative shocks seem a little too easy and leave the reader with a sour taste in the mouth.
Bottom line: the murderer takes over too much of the action and puts our hero Matt in the background. The ending terrifies and disturbs the reader, true, but ultimately it does not satisfy.
September 6, 2012
At this point Matt Scudder is 62 years old, happily married and semi-retired. But don’t think that he’s content with just hitting the early bird special at the nearest buffet or spending his time arguing with empty chairs.
The murder of a wealthy couple shocks New York, and the case catches Matt’s interest because he had attended the same event they were at before they were killed. But the discovery of a murder/suicide of two men leaves a mountain of evidence proving they were the killers so whole thing is wrapped up quickly. After meeting a relative of the couple with a few misgivings about the case, Matt slowly drifts into an informal investigation and finds clues that point to a third man behind it all.
As usual there’s a personal subplot with Matt feeling guilty and edgy after a strained encounter with his grown sons at a family funeral. Matt walked out on his boys when they were young and while he supported them financially and tried to be part of their lives, he realizes that he’s never going to be anyone’s nomination for Father-Of-The-Year. Block plays up that angle by using Matt’s young associate TJ a lot in this one and their interactions highlight that while Matt might not have done well by his biological kids, he’s been a good friend and role model to this surrogate son.
There’s also a very nasty and creepy villain at work in this one, and I absolutely loved the process by which Matt eventually starts piecing this mystery together.
Random personal trivia: I met Lawrence Block when he was on tour for this book back in 2001. He politely answered my question about why in the hell Whoopi Goldberg had been cast as Bernie Rhodenbarr in the Burglar movie even though he had obviously been asked this a couple of thousand times before, and he gave a great reading of the Scudder short story The Night and the Music that I still think about whenever I pick up one of these books.
The murder of a wealthy couple shocks New York, and the case catches Matt’s interest because he had attended the same event they were at before they were killed. But the discovery of a murder/suicide of two men leaves a mountain of evidence proving they were the killers so whole thing is wrapped up quickly. After meeting a relative of the couple with a few misgivings about the case, Matt slowly drifts into an informal investigation and finds clues that point to a third man behind it all.
As usual there’s a personal subplot with Matt feeling guilty and edgy after a strained encounter with his grown sons at a family funeral. Matt walked out on his boys when they were young and while he supported them financially and tried to be part of their lives, he realizes that he’s never going to be anyone’s nomination for Father-Of-The-Year. Block plays up that angle by using Matt’s young associate TJ a lot in this one and their interactions highlight that while Matt might not have done well by his biological kids, he’s been a good friend and role model to this surrogate son.
There’s also a very nasty and creepy villain at work in this one, and I absolutely loved the process by which Matt eventually starts piecing this mystery together.
Random personal trivia: I met Lawrence Block when he was on tour for this book back in 2001. He politely answered my question about why in the hell Whoopi Goldberg had been cast as Bernie Rhodenbarr in the Burglar movie even though he had obviously been asked this a couple of thousand times before, and he gave a great reading of the Scudder short story The Night and the Music that I still think about whenever I pick up one of these books.
April 16, 2012
The Hollanders are brutally killed by a pair of burglars who have a falling out and kill each other. At least, that's how it appears initially. Matthew Scudder takes a closer look and stumbles upon a serial killer. Can he stop the killer before he kills again?
Once again, Block pulled the wool over my eyes. I knew my guess as to who the killer was was wrong when I noticed there were 120 pages left. Block planted a series of red herrings and Scudder and I both fell for them initially. The killer was cold and scarily reallistic. The chapters told from the killer's point of view were pretty chilling.
I've touted Matthew Scudder's supporting cast and character development as favorite attractions of the series. While we get appearances by Danny Boy Bell and Joe Durkin and a cameo by Mick Ballou, that's about as many of the continuing supporting cast appears. Actually, Matt's relationship with his estranged sons changes quite a bit, now that I think about it. TJ trying to get Matt to use a cellphone and a computer are amusing. Plus, how many detectives age as their further adventures are chronicled? Matt was 44 in the first book. Now he's 62.
While Hope to Die isn't my favorite Matthew Scudder books, it's still really good. Not to be missed by Matthew Scudder fans.
Once again, Block pulled the wool over my eyes. I knew my guess as to who the killer was was wrong when I noticed there were 120 pages left. Block planted a series of red herrings and Scudder and I both fell for them initially. The killer was cold and scarily reallistic. The chapters told from the killer's point of view were pretty chilling.
I've touted Matthew Scudder's supporting cast and character development as favorite attractions of the series. While we get appearances by Danny Boy Bell and Joe Durkin and a cameo by Mick Ballou, that's about as many of the continuing supporting cast appears. Actually, Matt's relationship with his estranged sons changes quite a bit, now that I think about it. TJ trying to get Matt to use a cellphone and a computer are amusing. Plus, how many detectives age as their further adventures are chronicled? Matt was 44 in the first book. Now he's 62.
While Hope to Die isn't my favorite Matthew Scudder books, it's still really good. Not to be missed by Matthew Scudder fans.
July 19, 2021
This 15th novel in Lawrence Block’s Matt Scudder mystery series finds the formerly alcoholic detective sober, happy, bored and kinda boring. From Hell’s Kitchen to Lincoln Center. I just so happened to read and finish it almost simultaneously with one I had skipped, When the Sacred Ginmill Closes, #6, which I like much, much better. Part of it is just a matter of taste, a preference for my noir novels to be in the lower versus the upper-middle class. I gave the last book FIVE stars, and now this one I rate two stars? But why? How?!!
This one opens with Matt and Elaine returning home to their Upper West Side brownstone after a concert at Lincoln Center Alice Tully Hall. Nice! But c'mon, I want that gin joint and the angst! Two people who also attended the concert they discover the next morning are now dead, in what seems to have been a botched burglary; their daughter Kristin hires Matt to investigate things since the cops think the case is closed: The assumed murderers are also dead in what the cops think (for some odd reason) is a murder-suicide. But why on earth would they think such a thing?!
The big problem with this one is that Block tries something different here in alternating Scudder’s narration with the voice of a psychopath, who also writes about his crimes on a serial killer website (yep, I guess these kinds of actually might exist). I really, really don't love the perspective of a serial killer, as much as I love Jim Thompson's The Killer Inside Me, but I know that book and this is no Killer Inside Me Me. It's not close to being in that class of a story! It's just one of Block's experimental books about serial killers that isoff-putting to me and takes us away from the key interest in the series: The mind of Matt Scudder. It's too sensationalistic, far-fetched and grisly for my taste.
This one opens with Matt and Elaine returning home to their Upper West Side brownstone after a concert at Lincoln Center Alice Tully Hall. Nice! But c'mon, I want that gin joint and the angst! Two people who also attended the concert they discover the next morning are now dead, in what seems to have been a botched burglary; their daughter Kristin hires Matt to investigate things since the cops think the case is closed: The assumed murderers are also dead in what the cops think (for some odd reason) is a murder-suicide. But why on earth would they think such a thing?!
The big problem with this one is that Block tries something different here in alternating Scudder’s narration with the voice of a psychopath, who also writes about his crimes on a serial killer website (yep, I guess these kinds of actually might exist). I really, really don't love the perspective of a serial killer, as much as I love Jim Thompson's The Killer Inside Me, but I know that book and this is no Killer Inside Me Me. It's not close to being in that class of a story! It's just one of Block's experimental books about serial killers that isoff-putting to me and takes us away from the key interest in the series: The mind of Matt Scudder. It's too sensationalistic, far-fetched and grisly for my taste.
December 22, 2012
"I didn't have anything to say to that. And the anger I'd felt before was gone now, stuffed wherever that sort of thing gets stuffed. If I felt anything it was an almighty weariness. I wanted this little talk to be over and I knew it was going to go on forever."
And that, in a nutshell, is the emotional tone of Hope to Die. A book filled with sober melancholy; Matt's ex's death and seeing his sons for the first time in four years brings a miasma of discontent to the story. Though Block tries to hook us in during the first chapter with Matt's imagining the viewpoint of a couple in a double-homicide and robbery, his fabrication is not enough to build a great deal of interest in the crime. Once the killers are found in a locked apartment, supposedly victims of a murder-suicide, the city forgets about it. However, it isn't long before TJ and a friend rope Matt into investigating the double-homicide. It isn't so much that he thinks the case is worthy; he wants to a distraction to pull him out of the emotional fog. (Once an alcoholic, always an alcoholic: Matt's clearly avoiding dealing with the emotions his estranged family rouses in him).
Pacing was enjoyable once the actual investigation gets underway. As always, the relationship between Scudder and TJ is deceptively pleasant and easy, and it becomes clear that TJ is a second chance for Scudder to positively influence a 'son.' In keeping with the mournful tone, there wasn't quite as much as Block's usual humorous asides, and the city-scape seemed a little drab, except, perhaps, the house undergoing renovation and paying off an 'inspector.'
One potential spoilery note on point of view:
While there was some effort to bring in the depth and reflection found in early Scudder books, both Matt and Block feel half-hearted in their sincerity. The ploy of Elaine and Matt attending the donor's dinner at Lincoln Center seems forced, when I can't remember Matt referencing classical music before. Block making a point of Matt's appreciation for jazz and classical music, then dropping a bunch of classical composer names and performances seems incongruous. I think back to prior books, and remember a passion for Chinese food one book, diner food another, evenings out at Mick's, and attending an S&M club, and I wonder if actually, instead of Block showing us previously unknown sides of Matt's personality, he's just giving him whatever interest that book needs, or whatever New York scene we haven't delved into before. Block also has become more overt in describing Scudder's emotional issues. Unfortunately, that became kind of a sticking point for me in a series that originally stood on it's subtle and complex characterizations.
Overall, the mystery was moderately interesting, with a couple of false leads, one or two more obvious than I prefer. I love TJ's dynamic role. I like that Matt got drawn in by emotions and grief of the victim's daughter, Kristin. Her character was wonderfully developed, along with the characters of the various investigating detectives. It was particularly nice to not blame the prematurely-closed case on incompetent police work. The bit character of the antiques dealer that lives on the ground floor was vintage New York.
I'd recommend it for Scudder fans, but it sits at about a solid three stars for me in the Scudder continuum.
And that, in a nutshell, is the emotional tone of Hope to Die. A book filled with sober melancholy; Matt's ex's death and seeing his sons for the first time in four years brings a miasma of discontent to the story. Though Block tries to hook us in during the first chapter with Matt's imagining the viewpoint of a couple in a double-homicide and robbery, his fabrication is not enough to build a great deal of interest in the crime. Once the killers are found in a locked apartment, supposedly victims of a murder-suicide, the city forgets about it. However, it isn't long before TJ and a friend rope Matt into investigating the double-homicide. It isn't so much that he thinks the case is worthy; he wants to a distraction to pull him out of the emotional fog. (Once an alcoholic, always an alcoholic: Matt's clearly avoiding dealing with the emotions his estranged family rouses in him).
Pacing was enjoyable once the actual investigation gets underway. As always, the relationship between Scudder and TJ is deceptively pleasant and easy, and it becomes clear that TJ is a second chance for Scudder to positively influence a 'son.' In keeping with the mournful tone, there wasn't quite as much as Block's usual humorous asides, and the city-scape seemed a little drab, except, perhaps, the house undergoing renovation and paying off an 'inspector.'
One potential spoilery note on point of view:
While there was some effort to bring in the depth and reflection found in early Scudder books, both Matt and Block feel half-hearted in their sincerity. The ploy of Elaine and Matt attending the donor's dinner at Lincoln Center seems forced, when I can't remember Matt referencing classical music before. Block making a point of Matt's appreciation for jazz and classical music, then dropping a bunch of classical composer names and performances seems incongruous. I think back to prior books, and remember a passion for Chinese food one book, diner food another, evenings out at Mick's, and attending an S&M club, and I wonder if actually, instead of Block showing us previously unknown sides of Matt's personality, he's just giving him whatever interest that book needs, or whatever New York scene we haven't delved into before. Block also has become more overt in describing Scudder's emotional issues. Unfortunately, that became kind of a sticking point for me in a series that originally stood on it's subtle and complex characterizations.
Overall, the mystery was moderately interesting, with a couple of false leads, one or two more obvious than I prefer. I love TJ's dynamic role. I like that Matt got drawn in by emotions and grief of the victim's daughter, Kristin. Her character was wonderfully developed, along with the characters of the various investigating detectives. It was particularly nice to not blame the prematurely-closed case on incompetent police work. The bit character of the antiques dealer that lives on the ground floor was vintage New York.
I'd recommend it for Scudder fans, but it sits at about a solid three stars for me in the Scudder continuum.
December 22, 2018
The Matt Scudder series moves into the 21st century with this 2001 novel. He’s gradually become more respectable as the series has progressed but even so the opening of this novel took me aback, as Scudder and Elaine attend a dinner for patrons of a “Mostly Mozart” festival at the Lincoln Center, for which honour they have paid $2500. It’s a far cry from 70s Scudder, for whom attending a prize fight would have been the height of culture. He hasn’t entirely left his old self behind though. He still likes to watch the boxing, still hangs around with Mick Ballou, and after the events of the last book he is back to being an unlicensed PI. Scudder’s latest case begins when a couple who attended the same patron’s dinner are brutally murdered on their return home.
This is an unusual Scudder novel in a couple of aspects. One is that part of the story is told from the perspective of the killer, the other is something I can’t mention without including spoilers. I did think that, in this book, the descriptions of the murders included a degree of detail that I’m not convinced was necessary. I imagine it was included to direct the reader’s emotions, and I realise there’s a degree of foolishness in choosing to read a crime novel and then complaining that it includes descriptions of crimes.
Setting those reservations aside, I personally found this a tense and compelling read. The second half simply demanded my attention. Another solid entry in the series.
This is an unusual Scudder novel in a couple of aspects. One is that part of the story is told from the perspective of the killer, the other is something I can’t mention without including spoilers. I did think that, in this book, the descriptions of the murders included a degree of detail that I’m not convinced was necessary. I imagine it was included to direct the reader’s emotions, and I realise there’s a degree of foolishness in choosing to read a crime novel and then complaining that it includes descriptions of crimes.
Setting those reservations aside, I personally found this a tense and compelling read. The second half simply demanded my attention. Another solid entry in the series.
February 2, 2015
When a married couple is found brutally murdered in their own home, the two scum bags thought responsible are found dead in their own apartment of an apparent murder suicide. While the NYPD feels confident in closing the case, the niece of the deceased does not. She mentions this in passing to TJ who in turn brings it to Scudder’s attention and it isn't long before the three are sitting down in a diner trading theories. While there’s a definite lack of proof, Scudder feels her concerns are valid enough to warrant turning over a few rocks.
As the investigation intensifies, Scudder comes to believe a third man was involved. Can Scudder and TJ track down this mystery man and stop him from killing again?
The preceding novel Everybody Dies was a landmark instalment in Block’s tremendous Scudder series. Both the character development and the brutality of the action will stick with me for years. I'm not sure if I was suffering from some sort of Scudder hangover but Hope to Die, while an intricately plotted and intriguing mystery, didn't feel as memorable.
I’ve come to love Matt's career criminal best friend Mick Ballou almost as much as Scudder himself and while he was central to Everybody Dies, he was seemingly relegated to a background character in Hope to Die. I can hardly blame Block for that as I wouldn't want Mick shoehorned into a story if Block felt he wasn't needed as much, but I sure as hell missed him.
I also didn't care too much for the chapters written from the perspective of the killer. While I noted above that I loved the growth of Scudder’s supporting cast in Everybody Dies, the switching of narratives rarely sit well with me. That being said, it certainly helped to establish that the man Scudder was hunting was mentally unhinged. Unfortunately, it would often take me out of the story.
I only have TWO Scudder novels remaining (as well as a short story collection) and I’m pretty bummed about it. One is a sequel (All The Flowers Are Dying) and one is a flashback story (A Drop of the Hard Stuff) and while I'm looking forward to reading them, I’m not looking forward to running out of new Scudder material. Say it ain't so!
Also posted @ Every Read Thing.
As the investigation intensifies, Scudder comes to believe a third man was involved. Can Scudder and TJ track down this mystery man and stop him from killing again?
The preceding novel Everybody Dies was a landmark instalment in Block’s tremendous Scudder series. Both the character development and the brutality of the action will stick with me for years. I'm not sure if I was suffering from some sort of Scudder hangover but Hope to Die, while an intricately plotted and intriguing mystery, didn't feel as memorable.
I’ve come to love Matt's career criminal best friend Mick Ballou almost as much as Scudder himself and while he was central to Everybody Dies, he was seemingly relegated to a background character in Hope to Die. I can hardly blame Block for that as I wouldn't want Mick shoehorned into a story if Block felt he wasn't needed as much, but I sure as hell missed him.
I also didn't care too much for the chapters written from the perspective of the killer. While I noted above that I loved the growth of Scudder’s supporting cast in Everybody Dies, the switching of narratives rarely sit well with me. That being said, it certainly helped to establish that the man Scudder was hunting was mentally unhinged. Unfortunately, it would often take me out of the story.
I only have TWO Scudder novels remaining (as well as a short story collection) and I’m pretty bummed about it. One is a sequel (All The Flowers Are Dying) and one is a flashback story (A Drop of the Hard Stuff) and while I'm looking forward to reading them, I’m not looking forward to running out of new Scudder material. Say it ain't so!
Also posted @ Every Read Thing.
February 12, 2020
A robbery turns into a brutal home invasion. Both the suspects are found dead in an open and shut suicide-murder case except Scudder believes there was a third man involved. The biggest change here is every now and then the perspective changes from Scudder to the killer. From the reviews I perused on GR, most fans were not enthused by the decision. It is always jarring when a long running series suddenly changes POV but beyond the initial shock, it worked for me.
This series has always been happy to reinvent itself. From novella to novels, gritty mysteries to action thrillers, pre Mick Ballou to post Mick Ballou (when Scudder gets more trigger happy). I thought most of those changes impacted the series much more significantly than the change in POV. The former occasionally changed the type of stories that were being told about Scudder while Hope to Die only changes the storytelling technique. And more crucially Block is brilliant at putting us into the head of a deranged sadist. I have seen him do the same in a couple of his short stories and he replicates it here. The killer initially appears as an egotistical narcissist albeit a competent one. As the narrative progresses, Block shows us how his psyche unravels and he becomes more unhinged.
Scudder as a character has not always stayed consistent from one book to the next specially when it came to his views on murder and vigilantism. But in spite of that he had always remained an interesting character, because Block creates such a lived in world for him. His interactions with a variety of supporting characters, both regulars and new ones feel authentic in ways that is not always obvious in crime fiction. The biggest effect being plotlines that scream filler in lesser books actually help to enrich the characters here. For example Scudder's adult sons make their first appearance in the series and their scenes are excellent though they have no bearing over the crime story. I think Block realized that he was almost done with series (2 more books to go) and he dropped some parallels to the way Scudder started off. Scudder starts tithing again and gets back to being an unlicensed PI, similar to the first few books. Like the cyclicity of the whole thing.
The only minor problem here is the relative open-ended conclusion. I am not a fan of 'to be continued' storylines. However it answered the relevant mysteries that were set up in the book while keeping the coast clear for a direct sequel. The motivation behind the crime is also absurdly far-fetched. It might he considered a flaw by some but my take is different. It is an intentional plotting decision by Block to show how deluded the killer is.
The usual highpoints are present. The mystery is good and Block's dialogue crackles with a dry wit, without getting so cute that it breaks immersion or draws attention to itself. If I am asked to name my top ten crime books, Block's works would not even enter the discussion. But Block himself will always find a place in my list of top ten crime authors. This book perfectly demonstrates why. Block might not ever be brilliant but he is consistently great. Nothing ground breaking here but just a consummate professional dazzling the readers with virtuosity and versatility. Rating - 4/5.
This series has always been happy to reinvent itself. From novella to novels, gritty mysteries to action thrillers, pre Mick Ballou to post Mick Ballou (when Scudder gets more trigger happy). I thought most of those changes impacted the series much more significantly than the change in POV. The former occasionally changed the type of stories that were being told about Scudder while Hope to Die only changes the storytelling technique. And more crucially Block is brilliant at putting us into the head of a deranged sadist. I have seen him do the same in a couple of his short stories and he replicates it here. The killer initially appears as an egotistical narcissist albeit a competent one. As the narrative progresses, Block shows us how his psyche unravels and he becomes more unhinged.
Scudder as a character has not always stayed consistent from one book to the next specially when it came to his views on murder and vigilantism. But in spite of that he had always remained an interesting character, because Block creates such a lived in world for him. His interactions with a variety of supporting characters, both regulars and new ones feel authentic in ways that is not always obvious in crime fiction. The biggest effect being plotlines that scream filler in lesser books actually help to enrich the characters here. For example Scudder's adult sons make their first appearance in the series and their scenes are excellent though they have no bearing over the crime story. I think Block realized that he was almost done with series (2 more books to go) and he dropped some parallels to the way Scudder started off. Scudder starts tithing again and gets back to being an unlicensed PI, similar to the first few books. Like the cyclicity of the whole thing.
The only minor problem here is the relative open-ended conclusion. I am not a fan of 'to be continued' storylines. However it answered the relevant mysteries that were set up in the book while keeping the coast clear for a direct sequel. The motivation behind the crime is also absurdly far-fetched. It might he considered a flaw by some but my take is different. It is an intentional plotting decision by Block to show how deluded the killer is.
The usual highpoints are present. The mystery is good and Block's dialogue crackles with a dry wit, without getting so cute that it breaks immersion or draws attention to itself. If I am asked to name my top ten crime books, Block's works would not even enter the discussion. But Block himself will always find a place in my list of top ten crime authors. This book perfectly demonstrates why. Block might not ever be brilliant but he is consistently great. Nothing ground breaking here but just a consummate professional dazzling the readers with virtuosity and versatility. Rating - 4/5.
May 1, 2015
This my fifth book of the seventeen book Mathew Scudder series. I am looking forward to reading the rest of this very enjoyable and entertaining series. To me Lawrence Block is one the greatest writers of crime fiction that I have read!
July 26, 2024
[3.8] The plot is compelling, and it was an overall better time than I’ve had with the last few Matthew Scudder books, but oh my goodness, that ending. I’ve haven’t felt this upset by a mystery’s conclusion in a while 😂
June 7, 2017
Matt Scudder is now 62 with 18 years of sobriety under his belt. His personal life brings a funeral, that of his ex-wife, and brief encounters with his grown sons. He and his wife Elaine enjoy a variety of concerts and find their lives intersect with attendance at the same events that were the last enjoyed by the Hollanders, a couple brutally murdered shortly after arriving home from a concert. With TJ attending a class on the French Revolution, he meets a fellow student, a relative of the slain couple who questions who may have been the responsible party for the murder/robbery. Matt takes a meeting with her and begins his usual methodical and thorough-going investigation.
This is a serial-killer book and the characters populating the pages hold the interest even though I do try to avoid creepy thought processes of serial killers. Scudder is just a well developed character one likes to spend time with.
This is a serial-killer book and the characters populating the pages hold the interest even though I do try to avoid creepy thought processes of serial killers. Scudder is just a well developed character one likes to spend time with.
June 30, 2010
I'm a long-time fan of PI Matt Scudder, though I tend to favor the older titles than the newer ones. That said, this one I enjoyed. Matt, Elaine, and TJ track a mysterious serial killer who acts "cute" perpetrating his heinous crimes. The nice subplot involves Matt with his two estranged sons who are now very different adults. Solid hardboiled fare, as always.
February 13, 2023
Sert dedektif (hard boiled) romanlarında hikaye özel dedektifin ağzından anlatılır. Lawrence Block, bu türün en iyi örneklerini verdiği Matt Scudder serisinde anlatımını yenilemek için farklı yöntemler denemiştir. Bu romanda katilin bakış açısıyla aktarılan ve hikayedeki gerilimi, heyecanı artıran bölümler yazarın ilk defa denediği yeniliklerden biri. Kitaptaki tek sorun katilin motivasyonunun ve romanın sonunun yeterince tatmin edici olmaması. Öte yandan cinayetin yöntemi, Matt Scudder'ın araştırması önceki romanlar kadar etkileyici.
Seride geçmişe kıyasla en dikkat çekici taraf, Matt Scudder'ın özellikle evlendikten sonra daha huzurlu bir iç dünyası olması. Önceki romanlarda polisken yanlışlıkla küçük bir kızın ölümüne neden oluşu onu her daim bir hayalet gibi kovalardı. Şimdilerde yaşının da getirdiği hayat deneyimiyle artık geçmişini kabullenen bir Matt Scudder var karşımızda.
Bazı kusurlarına rağmen keyifle okudum Ölmeyi Bekle'yi.
Seride geçmişe kıyasla en dikkat çekici taraf, Matt Scudder'ın özellikle evlendikten sonra daha huzurlu bir iç dünyası olması. Önceki romanlarda polisken yanlışlıkla küçük bir kızın ölümüne neden oluşu onu her daim bir hayalet gibi kovalardı. Şimdilerde yaşının da getirdiği hayat deneyimiyle artık geçmişini kabullenen bir Matt Scudder var karşımızda.
Bazı kusurlarına rağmen keyifle okudum Ölmeyi Bekle'yi.
August 2, 2022
I've finished the Scudder series* and that saddens me. I love Matt and the way he's portrayed by Lawrence Block. To me, he's a living, breathing, and wholly flawed man. Not necessarily someone I'd be likely to hang out with, but I appreciated the opportunity to take a ride on his shoulders through his adventures, and to be there when he rubbed those shoulders with some truly colorful characters. I loved seeing the evolution of New York City from the funky '70s, the coked up '80s, and on through the gentrified '90s and '00s.
This particular episode takes the reader into the mind of a psychological killer, and as always, has us guessing at first just who the evil bastard could be. Is it some rando crazy m.f.er or a supposedly beloved family member? I love how the twists are laid out in this one.
* "But Koivu, there're two full-length novels to go in the series! What do you mean you've finished it?" First off...You say "there're" too?! Ha! Well anyhow, in answer to your question, I picked up book #16 years ago, having never read anything by Block before. I read it and loved it, and it just so happened that #17 was right handy as well, so I figured why not. It wasn't until after reading both books that I decided to go back and start at the very beginning.
This particular episode takes the reader into the mind of a psychological killer, and as always, has us guessing at first just who the evil bastard could be. Is it some rando crazy m.f.er or a supposedly beloved family member? I love how the twists are laid out in this one.
* "But Koivu, there're two full-length novels to go in the series! What do you mean you've finished it?" First off...You say "there're" too?! Ha! Well anyhow, in answer to your question, I picked up book #16 years ago, having never read anything by Block before. I read it and loved it, and it just so happened that #17 was right handy as well, so I figured why not. It wasn't until after reading both books that I decided to go back and start at the very beginning.
July 3, 2017
RATING: 4.25
It’s an eerie feeling to know that you may have had an association with someone right before they die. That’s exactly what happens when Matt Scudder learns that Byrne and Susan Hollander are murdered after attending a reception and concert at Lincoln Center in New York. Matt and his wife Elaine had also attended that reception, which causes Scudder to wonder if he had talked to the Hollanders, if perhaps they had shared some interest. Or were they merely people in the same room at the same time? He also wonders about that fateful evening and how events transpired for the Hollanders. Block very skillfully builds a possible scenario, and the reader isn’t really sure what occurred until a final brutal unveiling at the end of Chapter 1. We only know that something bad has happened, and the actual revelation of the details is quite jolting.
The Hollanders lived in an expensive brownstone in the Village, and it appears that the motive for their murder may have been robbery. That is reinforced when the burglars dies in a subsequent murder/suicide and the Hollanders’ belongings are found in their hands. The case is officially closed, but Scudder has a sense that the resolution is too “cute”, too neat, and that possibly a third person has manipulated the chain of events. When more killings occur, Scudder’s suspicions seem validated. That early sense of connection to the Hollanders leads Matt to look in more detail at the sequence of events.
Scudder has surrendered his PI license in an earlier situation and so is only investigating unofficially. He is hired first by a niece of the victims and then by their daughter, who is under suspicion as the estate she stands to inherit is quite sizable. Scudder is ably assisted by a young streetwise man by the name of TJ, who is one of my favorite characters in the series. The contrast between the Luddite Scudder who refuses to join the modern world of cell phones and computers and the cocky young man makes for some humorous yet warm moments. The addition of TJ to the team allows him to face some of the more physical dangers that would not be credible if handled by a 62-year-old man.
Hope to Die is the 15th book in the Matt Scudder series. It’s been 25 years since the first Scudder book, The Sins of the Father, was published (in 1976). The character of Scudder has aged well over that period of time. His life is more balanced; he faithfully attends AA meetings (18 years sober!) and has a great marital relationship. There are still vestiges of the Scudder of yore—he still gives part of his income to charity and accepts payment in the form of a monetary gift rather than a set fee. And there are some interesting interactions with his sons as they meet after the death of his ex-wife of cancer, some connections made and some torn asunder.
This is a series that doesn’t show any signs of losing its edge. In fact, Block has tried some different approaches in this book. One of the most successful is in changing points of view from Scudder to the villain. Most of the book is narrated by Scudder, and that allows us to form an intimacy with the lead character. It feels as though he is having a conversation with the reader. As the book progresses, Block devotes several chapters to the villain and we switch to third person point of view. Seeing into the mind of this individual is truly terrifying. The device serves to build tension, as we become aware of events of which Scudder knows nothing. In a nod to today’s world, the killer is involved in an online newsgroup where he watches his actions being discussed. And as the book progresses, his mental state deteriorates before our eyes, making for some very compelling reading.
From the cleverly constructed opening to the pitch perfect ending, this is a book to enjoy and savor. The investigation is complex and followed in real time, and there are absolutely no false notes, no amazing coincidences, no easy answers handed to Scudder on a platter. Block does a masterful job, and I highly recommend this book.
It’s an eerie feeling to know that you may have had an association with someone right before they die. That’s exactly what happens when Matt Scudder learns that Byrne and Susan Hollander are murdered after attending a reception and concert at Lincoln Center in New York. Matt and his wife Elaine had also attended that reception, which causes Scudder to wonder if he had talked to the Hollanders, if perhaps they had shared some interest. Or were they merely people in the same room at the same time? He also wonders about that fateful evening and how events transpired for the Hollanders. Block very skillfully builds a possible scenario, and the reader isn’t really sure what occurred until a final brutal unveiling at the end of Chapter 1. We only know that something bad has happened, and the actual revelation of the details is quite jolting.
The Hollanders lived in an expensive brownstone in the Village, and it appears that the motive for their murder may have been robbery. That is reinforced when the burglars dies in a subsequent murder/suicide and the Hollanders’ belongings are found in their hands. The case is officially closed, but Scudder has a sense that the resolution is too “cute”, too neat, and that possibly a third person has manipulated the chain of events. When more killings occur, Scudder’s suspicions seem validated. That early sense of connection to the Hollanders leads Matt to look in more detail at the sequence of events.
Scudder has surrendered his PI license in an earlier situation and so is only investigating unofficially. He is hired first by a niece of the victims and then by their daughter, who is under suspicion as the estate she stands to inherit is quite sizable. Scudder is ably assisted by a young streetwise man by the name of TJ, who is one of my favorite characters in the series. The contrast between the Luddite Scudder who refuses to join the modern world of cell phones and computers and the cocky young man makes for some humorous yet warm moments. The addition of TJ to the team allows him to face some of the more physical dangers that would not be credible if handled by a 62-year-old man.
Hope to Die is the 15th book in the Matt Scudder series. It’s been 25 years since the first Scudder book, The Sins of the Father, was published (in 1976). The character of Scudder has aged well over that period of time. His life is more balanced; he faithfully attends AA meetings (18 years sober!) and has a great marital relationship. There are still vestiges of the Scudder of yore—he still gives part of his income to charity and accepts payment in the form of a monetary gift rather than a set fee. And there are some interesting interactions with his sons as they meet after the death of his ex-wife of cancer, some connections made and some torn asunder.
This is a series that doesn’t show any signs of losing its edge. In fact, Block has tried some different approaches in this book. One of the most successful is in changing points of view from Scudder to the villain. Most of the book is narrated by Scudder, and that allows us to form an intimacy with the lead character. It feels as though he is having a conversation with the reader. As the book progresses, Block devotes several chapters to the villain and we switch to third person point of view. Seeing into the mind of this individual is truly terrifying. The device serves to build tension, as we become aware of events of which Scudder knows nothing. In a nod to today’s world, the killer is involved in an online newsgroup where he watches his actions being discussed. And as the book progresses, his mental state deteriorates before our eyes, making for some very compelling reading.
From the cleverly constructed opening to the pitch perfect ending, this is a book to enjoy and savor. The investigation is complex and followed in real time, and there are absolutely no false notes, no amazing coincidences, no easy answers handed to Scudder on a platter. Block does a masterful job, and I highly recommend this book.
May 10, 2015
This was the first Scudder book I ever read (jumped into the pool a little late at #15 in the series) but it's one of my favourites and pits our hero against one of his most devious, chilling foes.
February 20, 2009
I don't know if authors read everything people write about their books, but in the event Lawrence Block should stumble onto this review, I have a message for him:
Mr. Block, please write more Matthew Scudder books. I really like the sober, middle-aged Scudder, who seems to have matured along with his author. TJ, the street kid whose mind moves like a breakdancer, is absolutely delightful. And other, often tough-as-nails characters you invent along the way--such as the antique dealer in Hope to Die--are sometimes heart-breakingly real.
Bernie Rhondenbarr, the gentleman burglar, has been fun, but he doesn't grow and his tricks are getting old. I haven't been able to work up a whole lot of empathy for Tanner or Keller. Reading about a guy who can't sleep makes me tired, and I just can't buy into the notion of a sensitive, self-reflective hit man. But I miss Scudder during the five or six years' hiatus between installments.
Oh, and thanks for the nonfiction books about writing. Aren't we about due for another?
Respectfully yours,
DB
Mr. Block, please write more Matthew Scudder books. I really like the sober, middle-aged Scudder, who seems to have matured along with his author. TJ, the street kid whose mind moves like a breakdancer, is absolutely delightful. And other, often tough-as-nails characters you invent along the way--such as the antique dealer in Hope to Die--are sometimes heart-breakingly real.
Bernie Rhondenbarr, the gentleman burglar, has been fun, but he doesn't grow and his tricks are getting old. I haven't been able to work up a whole lot of empathy for Tanner or Keller. Reading about a guy who can't sleep makes me tired, and I just can't buy into the notion of a sensitive, self-reflective hit man. But I miss Scudder during the five or six years' hiatus between installments.
Oh, and thanks for the nonfiction books about writing. Aren't we about due for another?
Respectfully yours,
DB
April 3, 2015
The fifteenth Matt Scudder novel is an example of Lawrence Block at his best. The murder of a lawyer and his novelist wife at the hands of a pair of lowlifes whose post-murder and robbery falling out leads to their murder-suicide leads to a quick police case. Things seem clear, but not to Matt Scudder or to the couple's surviving daughter. How Scudder, TJ, and a sympathetic cop uncover what really happened makes for a good book. It also raises the specter of some kind of follow-up that's not another book in the series, though I haven't encountered it if it was written.
June 7, 2018
There are many fine reviews of Hope to Die posted on Goodreads. I have not read all of them, but I would especially recommend those by James Thane and someone identified only as "Carol."
I will just mention some points about the book, which others might have already discussed:
✳️
I agree with the many people here who feel that the parts of the book narrated by the murderer are intrusive. I would add that although the killer is clearly mentally ill and rather less clever than he thinks he is, he is still portrayed as bright and charismatic. Block tends to make horrible people fun to read about. Readers are clearly supposed to root for Block's murderous series characters Martin Ehrengraf and Keller. I suspect that the serial killer in this book is intended to be a rather engaging monster.
✳️
A minor mistake in the Harper Torch November, 2002 paperback edition:
On the subject line he types: Bierman innocent victim.
No, only the worst idiots use all caps like that. It's the newsgroup equivalent of shouting. He deletes it, tries again: Bierman innocent victim.
Better.
Well, not really better. Exactly the same. They forgot to put the "all caps" passage in caps.
✳️
The mother of Jason, one of the characters killed in the book, tells Scudder:
"The last time he got in trouble," she said, "they had him see a counselor, and I have to give New York credit for this, because Jason said the man helped him see things a little more clearly."
Scudder comes to believe that the "counselor" is the murderer he is seeking. Someone referred Jason to that counselor: a police officer, a parole officer, or someone else involved in Jason's last encounter with the police. That person could, presumably, give Scudder information about the counselor, but Scudder never tries to look into this.
I have enjoyed Lawrence Block's entire Matthew Scudder series. This is not one of the very best of the series books, but it is certainly worth reading.
I will just mention some points about the book, which others might have already discussed:
✳️
I agree with the many people here who feel that the parts of the book narrated by the murderer are intrusive. I would add that although the killer is clearly mentally ill and rather less clever than he thinks he is, he is still portrayed as bright and charismatic. Block tends to make horrible people fun to read about. Readers are clearly supposed to root for Block's murderous series characters Martin Ehrengraf and Keller. I suspect that the serial killer in this book is intended to be a rather engaging monster.
✳️
A minor mistake in the Harper Torch November, 2002 paperback edition:
On the subject line he types: Bierman innocent victim.
No, only the worst idiots use all caps like that. It's the newsgroup equivalent of shouting. He deletes it, tries again: Bierman innocent victim.
Better.
Well, not really better. Exactly the same. They forgot to put the "all caps" passage in caps.
✳️
The mother of Jason, one of the characters killed in the book, tells Scudder:
"The last time he got in trouble," she said, "they had him see a counselor, and I have to give New York credit for this, because Jason said the man helped him see things a little more clearly."
Scudder comes to believe that the "counselor" is the murderer he is seeking. Someone referred Jason to that counselor: a police officer, a parole officer, or someone else involved in Jason's last encounter with the police. That person could, presumably, give Scudder information about the counselor, but Scudder never tries to look into this.
I have enjoyed Lawrence Block's entire Matthew Scudder series. This is not one of the very best of the series books, but it is certainly worth reading.
November 15, 2017
When characterization lets you down, add a bad guy and more dead bodies.
April 4, 2018
Great one....but these are all good! The regular characters make appearances, but new people made more of an impact in this book. I'm guessing we may see some of them again.
January 5, 2016
The 15th entry in the Matt Scudder series is not as intense, as personal, or as ambitious in scope as its predecessor Everybody Dies. However, it is still a strong mystery novel in its own right. A wealthy middle-class Manhattan couple is murdered in their home, and then the apparent killers are found dead in Brooklyn a few days later. What seems like an open-and-shut case to the police feels like a well-coordinated frame-up job to Scudder.
One of my favorite passages occurs in the first few chapters as Scudder finds himself drawn to the case without really understanding why. He ambles aimlessly for a while knocking on doors and asking questions. There is a lot of emphasis in the text on the various subway routes and taxicabs he takes around town. I thought it was an odd choice for the author to focus on this. Then, Scudder realizes what has been bothering him: How could the murderers get from the crime scene to their hideout covered in blood and carrying pillow cases full of stolen loot? The subways and taxis would have been too dangerous. The answer: there must have been a 3rd man driving a getaway car. And so, we’re off to the races... Block’s textual emphasis on getting around the city sets up the reader’s mind perfectly to prepare for this epiphany.
Block varies things up a bit in this book. For the first time I can recall in this series, he presents chapters written from the killer’s point of view, and he ends on a bit of a cliffhanger. The next volume All the Flowers Are Dying serves as a direct sequel/continuation. Also, Hope to Die seemed less noir than some of the other books. While not exactly light-hearted, it was sprinkled liberally with tongue-in-cheek jabs at many genre staples—serial killers, computer technology, and psychoanalysis, in particular.
One of the great things about this series is that Block has been writing it since the mid-70’s, and he allows his characters to age in real time. Since New York is such an integral part of the fabric of these stories, we get to watch the city change and grow over 40 years as well. Hope to Die captures NYC in early 2001 just prior to 9/11. People are still learning to embrace the internet, AOL, and newsgroups. Cell phones have just begun to supplant pay phones and beepers. Smartphones, tablets, GPS, and Google have all yet to emerge into the national consciousness. Scudder is, to say the least, a late-adopter, but he finds himself faced with new technology at every turn.
There’s a nice subplot involving Scudder’s middle-aged sons, in which he tries to own up to mistakes he made much earlier in the series. It is not germane to the main thrust of the narrative, but it is a nice touch for long-term readers who have been wondering how the boys turned out.
If you have not discovered Scudder yet, and maybe you don't want to start in the mid-1970's with Sins of the Father, this would also be a good entry point.
One of my favorite passages occurs in the first few chapters as Scudder finds himself drawn to the case without really understanding why. He ambles aimlessly for a while knocking on doors and asking questions. There is a lot of emphasis in the text on the various subway routes and taxicabs he takes around town. I thought it was an odd choice for the author to focus on this. Then, Scudder realizes what has been bothering him: How could the murderers get from the crime scene to their hideout covered in blood and carrying pillow cases full of stolen loot? The subways and taxis would have been too dangerous. The answer: there must have been a 3rd man driving a getaway car. And so, we’re off to the races... Block’s textual emphasis on getting around the city sets up the reader’s mind perfectly to prepare for this epiphany.
Block varies things up a bit in this book. For the first time I can recall in this series, he presents chapters written from the killer’s point of view, and he ends on a bit of a cliffhanger. The next volume All the Flowers Are Dying serves as a direct sequel/continuation. Also, Hope to Die seemed less noir than some of the other books. While not exactly light-hearted, it was sprinkled liberally with tongue-in-cheek jabs at many genre staples—serial killers, computer technology, and psychoanalysis, in particular.
One of the great things about this series is that Block has been writing it since the mid-70’s, and he allows his characters to age in real time. Since New York is such an integral part of the fabric of these stories, we get to watch the city change and grow over 40 years as well. Hope to Die captures NYC in early 2001 just prior to 9/11. People are still learning to embrace the internet, AOL, and newsgroups. Cell phones have just begun to supplant pay phones and beepers. Smartphones, tablets, GPS, and Google have all yet to emerge into the national consciousness. Scudder is, to say the least, a late-adopter, but he finds himself faced with new technology at every turn.
There’s a nice subplot involving Scudder’s middle-aged sons, in which he tries to own up to mistakes he made much earlier in the series. It is not germane to the main thrust of the narrative, but it is a nice touch for long-term readers who have been wondering how the boys turned out.
If you have not discovered Scudder yet, and maybe you don't want to start in the mid-1970's with Sins of the Father, this would also be a good entry point.
June 9, 2017
He began as an ex-police detective with a gold shield who left the force after a child was caught in the crossfire of a righteous shooting. He left his family and suburban life, too, drinking himself into a stupor before spending decades attending meetings in church basements and finding a way to live with himself. On the surface by the time the fifteenth novel rolls around, Scudder has put a life together. He has remarried, lives in an upscale apartment, attends the theater and classical concerts, and has TJ working for him almost as a partner. But beneath the surface, he's still haunted by some ghosts from his past such as the wife and kids he walked out on twenty years earlier. There is a brutal double murder at the heart of this novel and, not surprisingly, one that appears to be a closed case very quickly with the perpetrators themselves dying in a murder-suicide. But, something is not right the way it all closed up like a present with a pretty bow on it and Scudder is asked to poke around the tiniest scraps and find out if there was something more to the story, something more sinister than the brutal, depraved attack on the couple who had sat in the same theater with Scudder and Elaine that night. The book has the same gritty voice that Scudder novels are known for and the plot will leave the reader guessing and double guessing. Although the story has its fair share of blood and death, it doesn't feel as visceral or as dangerous as other books in the series and it does seem to take a while for the plot to develop. Block also delves into a technique new to the series by interspersing chapters with the killer's voice along with Scudder's own. All in all, a good, solid read, although, read by itself as a standalone book, it might not prove to be earth-shattering.
April 13, 2024
The fifteenth Matt Scudder mystery. After a wealthy couple are killed in a brutal home invasion, Scudder is hired by their daughter to investigate the killings, despite the fact that the killers seem to be dead in a cut-and-dried murder-suicide.
While typically gritty, this book differs from the rest of the series in a few minor ways. For the first time, another character besides Scudder narrates in a few brief chapters; Block does a wonderful job here of evoking an egotistical, calculating, deranged intelligence, a man whose plots are so Machiavellian that his crimes would seem to have no motive at all. Indeed, he is so many steps ahead of the law that Scudder’s brand of rough justice seems not to touch him. In all, this is a terrific thriller, probably the very finest of the series; the now sixty-something Scudder is as dogged as ever, with Elaine and TJ providing good backup, and TJ’s use of technology, while dated, not the laughing stock it had been in A Walk Among the Tombstones. Mick Ballou has a very brief and very cool cameo, as well. In terms of hard-boiled drama on the mean streets, I doubt there’s a more satisfying thriller out there.
[Read twice: 7/9/03, 8/15/11]
While typically gritty, this book differs from the rest of the series in a few minor ways. For the first time, another character besides Scudder narrates in a few brief chapters; Block does a wonderful job here of evoking an egotistical, calculating, deranged intelligence, a man whose plots are so Machiavellian that his crimes would seem to have no motive at all. Indeed, he is so many steps ahead of the law that Scudder’s brand of rough justice seems not to touch him. In all, this is a terrific thriller, probably the very finest of the series; the now sixty-something Scudder is as dogged as ever, with Elaine and TJ providing good backup, and TJ’s use of technology, while dated, not the laughing stock it had been in A Walk Among the Tombstones. Mick Ballou has a very brief and very cool cameo, as well. In terms of hard-boiled drama on the mean streets, I doubt there’s a more satisfying thriller out there.
[Read twice: 7/9/03, 8/15/11]
August 21, 2014
Another classic Scudder novel. As I’ve noted in other Block reviews, I’ve listened to Block read his own work and there’s a definite cadence to his writing, as unique as Robert Parker’s Spenser novels (but much less intrusive.) So now when I read any of Block’s work, it’s almost as if I’m hearing his voice in my head. Pleasant but sometimes disconcerting.
Scudder investigates the killing, burglary and rape of the Hollanders. He’s approached initially by Byrne Hollander’s niece who has suspicions that their daughter, Kristin, was somehow involved. Nothing seems to point in that direction but the discovery of the bodies of the two burglars, dead from an apparent murder/suicide seems a bit too coincidental for Scudder. Good investigation despite the rather thin motivation for the complicated killings.
Something I found a bit discomfitting was the italicized thoughts of the killer, outlining and discussing his actions. I may be wrong, but I don’t remember that kind of interposition in the other Scudder books I’ve read. 3.5645 stars.
Scudder investigates the killing, burglary and rape of the Hollanders. He’s approached initially by Byrne Hollander’s niece who has suspicions that their daughter, Kristin, was somehow involved. Nothing seems to point in that direction but the discovery of the bodies of the two burglars, dead from an apparent murder/suicide seems a bit too coincidental for Scudder. Good investigation despite the rather thin motivation for the complicated killings.
Something I found a bit discomfitting was the italicized thoughts of the killer, outlining and discussing his actions. I may be wrong, but I don’t remember that kind of interposition in the other Scudder books I’ve read. 3.5645 stars.
June 12, 2014
Another excellent Matt Scudder novel, number 16 in the Series. This time involves Scudder & TJ looking into a seemingly closed case..more excellent interaction between the lead characters with some welcome additions. This is another quick & fast flowing thriller. Will miss this series when I finish it !
September 8, 2013
This book took me so long to read. I had surgery in the middle of it and it took a while to get back to reading it. I had read that some think it was the best Matthew Scudder. It was good but not even close to the best. I gave it 4 atars.
August 14, 2019
Each Matthew Scudder book offers a different sub-genre to the crime/hardboiled category of fiction. This makes each entry fresh, unique, and at times surprising. With Hope to Die, Scudder encounters a deranged, over-the-top serial killer who leaves a very cold trail with his victims. Now, for those who have read up to the this point, you may be thinking "Block's been there and done that with Ticket to the Boneyard." Trust me, this one is different. This entry is very similar to the Sanford-esque type of thriller in which we not only get a heinous villain, but also a glimpse into his psyche through a shared narrative. It works, too.
This one is far from the best Scudder adventure. There are times when it seems like Block is just going through the motions, but what can the reader expect from the character at this point? He's in his 60s by now and retired from full-time investigations. "Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in." Like many sequels in the fiction and movie worlds, there are a lot of side attractions in Hope to Die which in my opinion, make for a solid entry considering its place in the series.
Figuratively speaking, there is still some bourbon left in the bottle. Block and Scudder haven't run dry at 15.
This one is far from the best Scudder adventure. There are times when it seems like Block is just going through the motions, but what can the reader expect from the character at this point? He's in his 60s by now and retired from full-time investigations. "Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in." Like many sequels in the fiction and movie worlds, there are a lot of side attractions in Hope to Die which in my opinion, make for a solid entry considering its place in the series.
Figuratively speaking, there is still some bourbon left in the bottle. Block and Scudder haven't run dry at 15.
March 28, 2022
So I just realized that I accidently checked out the abridged audio version - and ugh! Those are so rare these days that I didn't even realize that the library had the abridged digital audio along with the unabridged. Did I miss some stuff? Probably. Did the abridgement detract from my experience? I'm not sure. I felt like I got a complete story and since the later books definitely have had some filler this probably isn't the end of the world.
Block is back on the serial killer bandwagon and since this one was published in the early aughts - that means we get the POV of the killer. Because of course we do. I found these bits not terribly compelling but the story itself was a solid OK. And while the ending lacks closure, I suspect we may see more of A.B. in the next book. One way to find that out...on to the next...
Block is back on the serial killer bandwagon and since this one was published in the early aughts - that means we get the POV of the killer. Because of course we do. I found these bits not terribly compelling but the story itself was a solid OK. And while the ending lacks closure, I suspect we may see more of A.B. in the next book. One way to find that out...on to the next...
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